Refrigerating apparatus



Jan. 23,1934. o. SUMMERS 1,944,617

' -rzm rucmrm'rm APPARATUS I Original Filed Jan. so, 1928 2 shame-sheet 1 Jan. 23,1934. M UMMER 1,944,617

REFRIGERATING ABPARATUS Original Filed Jan. 30, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I gmfmu Quorum;

Patented Jan. 23, 1934 REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Otto M. Summers, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to Frigidaire Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application January 30,

1928, Serial No. 250,367

I Renewed February ,1, 1933 s 14 Claims.

This invention relates to a refrigerating apparatus and more particularly to a unit one use of which is as a cooling device used ina mechanical refrigerating system.

An object of this invention is to'lprovide a unit for a refrigerating system having a tube with an integral fin in order to enhance the thermal con- ,tact area of the tube.

Another object of this invention is to provide I a'unit for a refrigerating system having a tube with a flat edge in order to enhance the area with which it may contact with a wall, to increase the thermal contact between the tube and wall Another object of this invention is to provide a unit for a refrigerating system having a tube with a flat side contacting with a wall and having an integral fin in order to enhance its thermal effect on the wall and on the medium within the space in which it is contained.

Another object of this invention is to provide a refrigerating unit with a float chamber and headers connected thereto, said headers having tubes with integral fins and flat edges, said flat edges contacting with a sleeve for an ice tray. Another object is to provide a method of manufacturing a header for a unit for a refrigerating system by punching and curling a sheet metal blank.

Another object of this invention is to provide a unit for a refrigerating system, which unit is made of sheet metal blanks, the joints of which are adapted to be closed by soldering.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred formof th present invention is clearly shown. I In the drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a unit embodying my invention, adapted 'to be used as a coolin unit of a refrigerating system; I

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of said unit; Fig. 3 is a plan view of a blank adapted to be formed into a header comprising part of said Fig. 4 is a cross-section alongthe line 44 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an end view of a sheet metal blank being bent to form a tube adapted to be used in said ,nected by sub-headers 25. The cooling unit, as

(area-95) which the tube has been connected to a wall with I which a thermal contact is to be made.

A- unit embodying my jinventionis generally designated as 20 and, when used as a cooling unit for a refrigerator, may comprisea float chamber 21, headers 22, refrigerating tubes 23, ice. tray sleeves 24, and sub-headers 25. The float chamber 21-may be connected tothe headers 22 by pipes 26. The headers 22 may have depending therefrom the tubes 23, and these tubes may contact with the ice tray sleeves 24. The refrigerating tubes 23' may be individually plugged at the ends, or they may be interconherein shown, is adapted to be inserted in a refrigerator cabinet and'may be connected to refrigerating machinery supplying liquid refrigerant through pipe 27 which refrigerant enters the float chamber 21 usually as a liquid, and is controlled by a float valve, not shown. The refrigerant evaporated in the cooling unit 20 returns to the refrigerating machinery through the pipe 28, usually in a gaseous form. A fitting 29, now well-known in the art, may join the pipe 27 with the float chamber and may contain a needle valve adapted to shut the fitting 29 and allow the pipe 27 to be disconnected therefrom without the escape of refrigerant from the float chamber 21. A similar fitting 30 connects the pipe 28 with the float chamber and it also is provided with a needle valve for the same purpose as the one provided in, fitting 29. K

The headers 22 are connected to the float chamber 21 by pipes 26. The headers 22' receive liquid refrigerantthrough said pipes 26 and distribute the same to refrigerating'tubes 23. The

- headers 22 may be made. from a sheet metal blank indicated as. 40 and shown more fully in' Figs. 3 and 4.- The blank 40 may have openings 41 and 42 punched along the edges having the shape of a cross-section'of the refrigerating tubes 23. The blank 40 may also have openings 43 punched thereinand said openings 43 may have flanges 44. i The pipes 26 fit in the openings 43, and the flanges 44 reenforce the connection. The blank 40 is curled so that the edges 45'over1ap'and the openings 41.and 42 are aligned, and are adapted to receive the tubes 23. The ends of the headers 22 may be plugged with blanks 46 after the blank 40 has been curled, and the edges may be soldered in any suitable manner.

tangular sheet metal blanks. As shown in Fig.

5, the blank 50 has been bent at 51, 52 and 53 to form a triple channel member. As shown in Fig. 6, the blank has been further bent at 54 to form two rectangular passages 55. As shown in Fig. 7, a 90 bend 56 brings the edges 57 of the blank 50 within the U-shaped portion 58 formed by bending the blank upon itself at 56. The joints of this tube may be soldered. As shown in Fig. 7, the fiat edges 59 of the tube thus formed contact with an ice tray sleeve 24 of the cooling unit and these edges 59 may be soldered to the sleeve 24 as shown at 60 and 61, and at the edge between said points.

The refrigerating tubes 23 thus formed. may be inserted in the openings 41 and 42 of the headers 22. The'lower ends of the refrigerating tubes 23 may be individually plugged up, or as shown in Figs. 1 and 2', the lower end of the tubes 23 may be joined by sub-headers 25. These subheaders may besimilar to the headers 22 except that the openings 43 are omitted. These headers 25 also are plugged at the ends by plugs 62 inserted at the ends, and all the seams may be soldered. The sleeves 24 are placed between the two rows of refrigerating tubes 23 and the contacting edges are soldered to the refrigerating tubes as shown in Fig. 7 and as hereinbefore described.

The soldering operations herein described may be'accomplished by dipping the members in molten solder, either individually, or after a partial or complete assembly of the different members.

It is seen that the flat edges 59 of the tubes 53 furnish a large thermal contact between the tubes and the wall of such a device as ice tray sleeve 24., The integral fins, formed by portions 58 of the tubes 23 also increase the thermal contact between the tubes and the surrounding medium.

If desired, flanges 63 may be formed in the openings 41 and 42 so that when the blank is curled the flanges 63 may form a slightly stronger .joint with the vertical tubes.

I have described in detail the development of a plurality of refrigerant conveying conduits from a single sheet of metal such as is disclosed in Fig. 7 and have shown a plurality of these structures as constituting the construction of the completed evaporator or cooling unit disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2,.-.but it is to be understood that such development need not be carried out as far as heretofore specifically described. For example, it will be obvious to those familiar with the art to which this invention relates that the development of a plurality of conduits as hereinbefore described may cease when the structure shown in Fig. 6 has been completed. It is apparent from the disclosure in Fig. 6 of the drawings that the rectangular passages 55 formed by corrugating or bending the single sheet of metal .upon itself provides a plurality of refrigerant conduits having fiat sides defining at least awall portion of a freezing compartment. In this structure the portions of the sheet of metal extending from and connecting the walls of the passages or conduits 55 serve to provide the conduits with additional heat absorbing surfaces. In the construction of an evaporator or cooling unit wherein the development of a plurality of conduit structure disclosed in Fig. -'7. It is also obvious that while I have shown in Fig. 6 only two passages or conduits 55 as being formed from the single sheet of metal any desired number of passages may be provided along a side of a freezing compartment by'simply increasing the size of the sheet of metal and increasing the number of bends or corrugations in the sheet. Thus a relatively long or wide continuous flat metal wall portion of a freezing compartment of an evaporator or cooling unit may be provided.

While I have shown my invention as specifically applied to a cooling unit of a refrigerating system, the invention is applicable to other units ofsuch systems.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

I 1. -A unitfor a refrigerating system comprising a tube formed of a sheet of material having a U-shaped portion forming a fin, edges of said sheet being within said U-shaped portion, and the portion of the sheet originally between said U-shaped portion and said edges being bent to form passages. 4

2. 'A unit for a refrigerating system comprising a tube formed of a sheet of material having a U-shaped portion forming a fin, edges of said sheet being within said U-shaped portion, and the portions of the sheet originally between said U-shaped portion and said edges being bent to form rectangular passages.

3. A unit for a refrigerating system comprising a wall, a tube with a flat side in thermal contact with said wall, said tube having an integral fin.

4. A unit for a refrigerating system comprising a wall, a tube with a fiat side in thermal contact with said wall, said tube having an integral fin diametrically opposite said wall.

5. A unit for a refrigerating system comprising an ice tray sleeve having a refrigerating tube with a flat side in contact therewith, said tube having an integral fin diametrically opposite said sleeve.

6. A unit for a refrigerating system comprising J a header formed of a sheet metal blank with apertures punched along two edges forthe reception of tubes, said blank being curled'to' overlap said edges and to align apertures.

7. A unit for a refrigerating system compris-v ing a float chamber, headers on both sides of 1 0 said chamber and connected therewith by tubes, refrigerating tubes depending from said headers, an ice tray sleeve in contact with said refrigerating tubes, said tubes having integral fins.

8. A unit for a refrigerating system comprising 1 g a tube formed of a sheet of metal having a pair of its opposite edges bent upon themselves along different lines enclosing a space adjacent each bend so as to form two passages, said-bent sheet being folded a third time longitudinally between 1 0 and parallel to the other bent edges to place the passages parallel to and adjacent each other.

9. A cooling unit for a refrigerator, said unit being adapted to be placed in the path of a cooling medium flowing thereover, said unit comprising a pair of spaced headers, means connecting said headers, a plurality of refrigerant tubes having a flat surface providing a wall of a .freezing space within the unitysaid tubes connected to One Of said headers, the material of said tubes 150 extending therefrom to form fins in more intimate contact with the cooling medium to be cooled.

10. A cooling unit for a refrigerator, said unit being adapted to be placed in the path of a cooling medium flowing thereover, said unit comprising a float chamber, a header connected to the float chamber, said header having depending therefrom a plurality of refrigerant tubes having flat surfaces providing a wall of a freezing space within the unit, the material of said tubes extending therefrom to form fins in more intimate contact with the cooling medium to be cooled.

11. An evaporator for refrigerating systems comprising heat exchange means forming a freezing compartment, said heat exchange means including a plurality of sheets of metal each bent to provide a refrigerant conveying tube cooperating with like tubes to provide a freezing compartment and each bent to provide an outwardly extending fin.

12. An evaporator for refrigerating systems comprising heat exchange means forming a freezing compartment, said heat exchange means in-' cluding a plurality of sheets of metal, each sheet being bent in the form of a loop with portions of a g 3 the sheet'extending from the looped portion to provide a refrigerant conveying tube and an outwardly extending fin, said refrigerant conveying tubes cooperating to form a wall of the freezing compartment.

13. An evaporator for refrigerating systems comprising heat exchange means forming a freezing compartment, said heat exchange means including a plurality of sheets of metal, each sheet being bent in the form of a loop with portions of the sheet extending from the looped portion to provide a refrigerant conveying tube, and an outwardly extending fin, an ice tray sleeve extending transversely to said refrigerant conveying tubes and having a side in thermal contact ,with a plurality of said refrigerant conveying tubes.

14. A cooling 'unit for refrigerating systems including, a sheet of metal bent upon itself to provide a plurality of refrigerant conduits having flat sides defining at least a portion of a wall of a freezing compartment, and an integral portion of said sheet of metal being extended from a wall of said conduits to provide said conduits with an additional heat absorbing'surface. 

